What To Do The Week Before Match

At this stage, you have submitted applications, conducted numerous interviews and, nervously submitted that dreadful rank-order list. You have completed the last official step of the residency-selection process. What’s next for residency applicants? A 16-day wait for Match Day. Yikes!

At this point, worrying about where you are going may be the only thing on your mind. For some soon-to-be doctors and their spouses that are action-takers, I have found that some start connecting with Realtors and looking at the housing market. 

While looking at houses isn't a BAD thing, you really should not be getting to involved or in depth with home hunting. You just NEVER really know where you are going with certainty. 

BUT there are some appropriate things could can be doing. 

1. Chatting with a physician lender to determine IF you will qualify for a doctor loan, and how much you may qualify for. You don't necessarily have to go through the entire preapproval process, running credit scores and such, but talking to a lender may give you a heads up as to whether you are a candidate for a loan. 

A rule of thumb for resident physicians making an average salary of $60,000 per year... a single income household will usually qualify for up to a $300,000 loan, while a dual income households often qualify up to $450,000 (or more depending on the income of the second income producing household member).

If you need a recommendation for a true physician lender (not all lender are truely offering physician loans), please contact us at [email protected]

2. Determining what your budget should be for household expenses. Speaking with a financial advisor now may help you plan in advance for what you would like your overall budget to be for rent or mortgage payments. 

A popular rule of thumb states you should spend roughly 30% of your monthly income on rent. For a single resident making around $60,000 this monthly budget would be $1500. In many areas, the cost of living is too high for this to be feasible. 

Also, personal lifestyle and existing debt will play a roll in how much you will want to spend on your next home. Perhaps you prioritize eating out or traveling (if you find the time) over your housing. Perfectly fine! But, you'll want to factor that in. 

While you won't be able to make a real determination until you know where you've Matched and what the cost of living is in that area will be, you can arm yourself with information that will help you prepare you by prioritizing your budget and spending. 

If you need help connecting with a great financial planner that is familiar with assisting new physicans, please email us at [email protected] and we will connect you.